I was teaching my middle school students. We had to go through the day and not say anything to them. We knew they were safe, and the administration made the decision not to tell the students what had happened. They felt it would be better for their parents to tell them. Only a few parents came to pick up their children early. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and the sky was absolutely crystal clear (what I call a Michigan-blue sky). We only had a couple of minutes to go before dismissal, and we were about to say a closing prayer for the day, when one of my girls said, "You know I feel like something has happened." Absolutely NO ONE had given ANY indication about the events of the day. I was maintaining my composure, and all I could say was, "Really? Gee, it's such a beautiful day outside. Why do you feel as if something has happened?" She said, "I don't know. I just feel it." The next morning when that class arrived for the first hour session, I mentioned our conversation on 9-11. I told her that she had freaked me out! She said that sometimes she just "gets a feeling" inside that something isn't right. Well......she was correct this time!! That particular class of students are now about 21 years old. My, how their world has changed! :cry:
I remember driving home and seeing huge U.S. flags already flying at half staff. I remember the silence.....the overwhelming, eerie silence that seemed to be everywhere. I don't live very far from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, and not hearing any airplanes flying over was really strange. My best memory, however, was how everyone came together. The desire for mean-spiritedness seemed to be put aside, and people were kinder to each other. There was a renewal of patriotism and oneness. It is so sad to me that the farther removed we are from that awful day, the farther removed we are from that kindness towards one other.
I had heard a news report about the rescue dogs in NYC and how they were being injured by stepping on broken glass and metal. Something inside me cried out to be able to do something to help them. I went to JoAnn Fabrics on Sunday afternoon and purchased some heavy canvas fabric and stayed up all night sewing booties for the dogs. I made over 150 of them. I decided to have my 8th grade students help me with them by trimming the seams and clipping the threads. I then got the idea that they could use markers to decorate the outside of the booties. Well, that idea led to the idea to get the entire school involved! We mailed them out the same day (Monday) to a police station close to Ground Zero. I included a letter with the booties that expressed our thoughts and prayers for the rescue workers. I never expected to receive any replies, but we did! I cherish those letters of gratitude and photographs of the rescue dogs and their handlers. They were so thankful for our gift. Because the booties were made of canvas and not a material that was stronger, they were never used, but they were kept by the volunteers as remembrances of the kindness of strangers. We had touched their lives in a way that we never intended, but we were so blessed to be able to express our feelings to them.